Patriots win home finale before D-League record crowd
April 19, 2006 - NBA G League (G League)
Fayetteville Patriots News Release
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C., April 19 - The NBA Development League's Fayetteville Patriots shattered their own year-old attendance record as 7,312 fans watched them close out their 2005-06 home schedule with a 115-106 victory over the Roanoke Dazzle on Fan Appreciation Night, April 7, at the Crown Coliseum. The previous league mark was 7,028, set on April 9, 2005 at the Crown.
The Patriots finished the season with a record of 16-32. However, coach Mike Brown's system garnered a league-leading five GATORADE NBA call-ups this season (Kaniel Dickens twice, Melvin Sanders twice and Mateen Cleaves) and three others earned opportunities to play overseas (Nigel Dixon, Sharrod Ford and Roderick Riley.) In addition, NBA players Gerald Green of the Boston Celtics and Amir Johnson and Alex Acker of the Detroit Pistons spent valuable time on assignment in Fayetteville and are now back contributing to their NBA teams.
"We had a lot of changes and a lot of challenges this season, but that's what this league is all about," Brown said. "If you roll through and win a bunch of games, but none of your players are prepared for summer league, have you really done right by them? We want our guys to get the best chance possible to get a shot at the NBA. So in that sense, we consider this a very successful season.
"And of course, then you look at all of the D-League players that have been able to either earn a shot or put themselves in position to earn a shot this offseason. We all share in that success." This season, the NBA called up 12 D-League players on 18 different occasions, bringing the five-year total to 46 players on 68 separate occasions. Eleven (11) former D-League coaches, six athletic trainers, 14 referees and 30 front office executives have also been called up over that span.
The D-League adopted an experimental rule for the 2005-06 season that mirrored the international rule governing contact with the ball while it is in the "cylinder." Players were allowed to touch the ball while it was above the goal as long as they didn't go through the rim to do it.
"It made for a little more excitement for the athletic players who can get high enough to take advantage of that rule," Patriots president Todd DeMoss said. "Then there were likely just as many examples of guys getting called for goaltending on the other end attempting to do it, so those things even out.
"But the NBA uses the D-League for those trials and you probably need more than one season to really make a judgment on how they have worked out."
League officials have already announced several changes that will take place by the start of the 2006-07 season that are all part of the continuing evolution of the "development" portion of the D-League mission. The league will include at least 14 franchises next season as four teams will move from the Continental Basketball Associaton (Sioux Falls, Colorado, Idaho and Dakota) and two expansion teams will be added (Anaheim and Bakersfield.)
"This is just the next step in the growth of our league," DeMoss said. "We are now truly a nationwide league and we're excited to be a part of it."
The D-League's minimum age requirement will drop to 18 in 2006, just as the minimum NBA requirement moves to 19. That means many of the younger D-League players may not be eligible for call-up next season since they will not meet the NBA minimum age requirement. The end result will likely be players spending more time in the D-League, rosters staying more stable and players who are better prepared when they do get the chance for a call-up.
Overall, DeMoss said the Patriots and the D-League had a successful season in 2005-06.
"We had a great run and really finished strong, maybe the best in the league," he said. "If we had our final crew just a couple weeks earlier, we probably would have made the playoffs. And I'm proud of the success we had in moving guys up.
"It was a great fifth season for us and the league. We're already excited about Season Six."
Designed to help grow the sport of basketball both domestically and internationally, the league also offers fun, family entertainment at affordable prices. The D-League is a source of on-court talent for the NBA's 30 teams and is a diverse human resources pool for the NBA and its teams by training employees in management, operations, public relations, sales and marketing positions.
NBA G League Stories from April 19, 2006
- Brunelle steps down as Stampede president and general manager - Idaho Stampede
- Patriots win home finale before D-League record crowd - Fayetteville Patriots
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